Unit 2 at Arkansas Nuclear One was still offline late Thursday afternoon after experiencing an automatic reactor trip at 8:23 a.m. on Wednesday.

Donna Gregory, ANO spokesperson, said plant personnel determined an issue with the vacuum pump caused the main turbine to trip, which in turn caused the automatic trip of the reactor.

“The plant is designed with a reactor protection system in place that automatically trips the system and goes off-line when it encounters any unexpected conditions,” Gregory said. “The system performed exactly the way it is designed for when encountering unexpected conditions. Plant personnel expect the issue to be resolved and have Unit 2 back on-line producing electricity within a few days.”

Gregory said that even after the vacuum pump is fixed plant personnel will go through a series of tests and safety procedures before the unit is back on-line.

“There is a process in place for when this happens,” Gregory said. “Once they make the necessary repairs, personnel will go through a series of tests and safety checks to ensure the plant is brought safey back on-line. It is a very detailed procedure.”

Gregory said consumers should not see a variance in their electricity service while the unit remains down. She said ANO supplies approximately 30 percent of the electricity demand in Arkansas and electrical service will not be affected.